Grace Walker’s debut novel The Merge is set in an entirely recognisable near future, where climate change and overpopulation are fast leading humanity into planetwide societal collapse. It’s a familiar setup, but Walker presents a scenario where an option to cut the physical population down by half, very quickly and—apparently—effectively has been discovered. A company called Combine in the UK has found a way to merge two people’s consciousness into one brain and body. We don’t quite know how (the science and technology behind this merge is pretty much ignored and not explained, which may be the point), but what we do know is that Combine—the company—can create Combines, a single human body that is home to the minds (souls?) of two people. Double the brain, double the personality, half the impact on the planet. Especially handy for those with a loved one who is suffering a terminal illness, or those who want to keep their family small when faced with the inevitable breakdown of life as we know it, right?

Except it doesn’t even sound good on paper. Which is why the entire premise feels rather odd; suspension of disbelief is going to be a high requirement for reading The Merge, which is actually very readable otherwise, if one can get past the idea that anyone would be happy with this scenario.

The story begins when this merging has already taken place multiple times, and is now at a point where a trial session is being run for people who are not at their healthiest. 20-something year old gonzo journalist/activist Amelia has convinced her mother to sign up for the merge, because Laurie has Alzheimer’s and is starting to lose herself. Amelia is convinced she can keep her mother forever by merging with her, or at least, that’s what she’s told Laurie. What she hasn’t told her is that she’s doing this only to investigate the Combine company, and to gain an all access pass to the process of becoming a Combine. Amelia plans to refuse at the very last minute, but of course, even the best laid plans go awry in the face of vengeful capitalist control.

Others in the same pre-merge orientation group include Ben, who will merge into his pregnant wife Annie so their family can remain small; Noah, who has cancer so will merge into his healthy younger brother Lucas; and Lara, a young ex-addict, who is being coerced by her father Jay to merge with him, so that he can keep her safe and make sure she never relapses again. The obvious ethical implications of one body and brain housing two separate individual consciousnesses are not really considered in the narrative too deeply, because Combine promises that after a few months of therapy and adjustment, there is a seamless integration between the two people who have merged. Not just that, but Combine promises all sorts of positive changes for the merged, such as having far fewer mental health issues than they did as individuals, making claims like “a ground-breaking 99% decrease in existential anxiety, demonstrating the transformative impact of shared consciousness on existential concerns,” and also an “impressive 80% boost in job performance ratings, suggesting that shared skills and collective problem-solving lead to heightened workplace efficiency.” Combines are also offered kickbacks, tax breaks, and better housing, to the point that un-merged individuals are being forced out of their homes so that Combines can be moved in.

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The Merge

Grace Walker

It is a weird cannibal-style colonisation of the human race: Combines, with their double-barreled names, their neck tattoos and special green clothing, are given preferential treatment, almost as if they were the true first class citizens of a promised future land. It’s all hugely problematic, of course, much beyond the idea of just giving up individuality, even if it is being pitched as the “merging of humanity towards a shared destiny… [and] recognising that our differences are our greatest strength and that, together, we have the power to heal the planet.”

None of this is spoiler territory: The table of contents makes it pretty clear that Amelia and Laurie will merge. The initial half of the book is told in alternating first person perspective from Laurie and Amelia each, but after the two merge, the story switches to a single narrative; a “we,” though the Combine therapists insist that the newly minted Laurie-Amelia start to think of themselves as a single entity as soon as possible. Laurie’s pre-merge fear that this “societal cleansing” and “only the rich and healthy will be left standing” has already set the reader up to expect the worst. Walker creates unique voices for Amelia and Laurie with confidence in the first half, and the segue to a post-merge version is deftly handled, as we see the navigation of this new reality from the POV of the characters’ newly combined consciousness. What happens next is a slightly rushed descent into chaos, without a very satisfying resolution. It does, however, leave the reader with plenty of questions, which is not a bad thing. Walker asks, how do you hold on to your principles when under huge systemic changes? Do you accept a change that feels inevitable, or do you keep fighting until your final breath?

It’s a little confusing as to why Combine (the company) has so much power, or how it has been accepted as the way forward by so many, so fast (Government conspiracy? Billionaires pushing for a more manipulatable population? BigPharma wanting to sell more pills? Take a guess), or how so many people who are involved seem to know and be playing along to something so obviously shady, but again, suspension of disbelief is important to enjoy this otherwise well written first novel.

The Merge is an interesting look at the limitations of really saving the planet, tyrannical control and resistance, but also at family, love and obligation.

The Merge is published by Mariner Books.